DangerDave's Dragon Blood Wine

This is the first wine going into my new (to me) 5 gallon carboys, just waiting for the tannin to be delivered, sometimes it's hard brewing using mail order, but closest brew shop is a 4 hr round trip so such is my burden lol

i use a few recipes passed down from the early 1800's tannings give it whats called mouth feel and finish, i rarely use tannins myself, if you can find any crab apples i use them in most every wine i make. the more you use the more tart the finish, what i'm getting at is other natural things can take the place of tannings, i now have 4 big bushes of sergeants yellow crab apples, most crab apples grow on trees so at hard to get to but sergeants both red or yeller are a bush verity of crab apples so around 6 to 7 feet is bout it on height. and like most bush's grow very aggressively so once started they do really well and unlike other fruits they tend to stay on the bush all winter so hungry deer can get to them, or me,, lol ,, just a thought but most crab apples are considered weeds, so if you can find any growing along the railway tracts you can dig up several stalks, they grow in bunches of what looks like a bunch of switches growing together, ya can dig up several then plant one here and one there and you'll end up with bushs growing here an there, mine i grow in my yard same goes with my elderberries
Dawg

winehomie said:

This is the first wine going into my new (to me) 5 gallon carboys, just waiting for the tannin to be delivered, sometimes it's hard brewing using mail order, but closest brew shop is a 4 hr round trip so such is my burden lol

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Just an observation!
I had a batch of Dragons Blood and a batch of Skeeter pee from last summer (2015) when I moved.
Both were exposed to extreme temperatures during the move. The Skeeter Pee has an off taste and the Dragons Blood was bland and weak in flavor.
Rather than throwing them both out. I blended them together and ended up with a pretty good 12 gallons of wine.
Even my wife is drinking it.
SO the moral is, don't throw it out before you try some tweaking.

welp this was the best advice I have ever been given! 5 cent hanger cut up and.....wow! there was a lot of gas left in that wine! and still more (the battery died)

this is bananas! and I was doing this by hand?? annnnnd I broke the Dewalt.

Lesson learned. Don't buy DeWalt battery tools. :-/. DAMHIKT

I'm waiting on my sorbate I just ordered. Can hardly wait. Smells great.

I love my Dewalt tools. I have the 18v set. I've been using them hard for years. Perhaps the smaller ones aren't made for long stretches of operation. I give mine a break every minute or so.

wineinmd said:

I love my Dewalt tools. I have the 18v set. I've been using them hard for years. Perhaps the smaller ones aren't made for long stretches of operation. I give mine a break every minute or so.

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PORTER CABLE FTW lol I love my PC cordless tools never a problem Dewalt has great tools but I have heard a lot of bad reviews on the cordless stuff.::

winehomie said:

PORTER CABLE FTW lol I love my PC cordless tools never a problem Dewalt has great tools but I have heard a lot of bad reviews on the cordless stuff.::

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I've had my Dewalt 18V set for over 15 years now. Still on my second set of batteries too. I was a plumbing contractor and used these tools every day without a problem. I can still de-gass 2 wines back to back with one charge. Probably close to 20 min whipping. No complaints here!

drainsurgeon said:

I've had my Dewalt 18V set for over 15 years now. Still on my second set of batteries too. I was a plumbing contractor and used these tools every day without a problem. I can still de-gass 2 wines back to back with one charge. Probably close to 20 min whipping. No complaints here!

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LET THE CORDLESS DRILL WARS BEGINE lmbo I guess you get good and bad with any brand PC is just my personal preference. I'm sure there are SOME good Dewalts out there ..............maybe LOL

Okay. Spakloid went in last Saturday. I have been noticing sediment similar to normal sediment at the bottom of the carboy. However, it runs up the curvy sides a little and some is further up stuck on the sides. Never used spakloid before. Will all that sediment stay put while I'm bottling (was hoping of do that tomorrow) or will it mix in my wine and make it cloudy?
Should I wait longer to bottle?

Noobberry said:

Okay. Spakloid went in last Saturday. I have been noticing sediment similar to normal sediment at the bottom of the carboy. However, it runs up the curvy sides a little and some is further up stuck on the sides. Never used spakloid before. Will all that sediment stay put while I'm bottling (was hoping of do that tomorrow) or will it mix in my wine and make it cloudy?
Should I wait longer to bottle?

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Just tap the side of your carboy several times close to the ridges and you will notice all that sediment that is hanging on the ridges start heading to the bottom. I would wait at least a day to give it time to settle before bottling.

I've used sparkled and others. The sediment has stuck on the sides, especially around the ridges of the glass carboy. You didn't say what kind of wine, as some produces more sediment than others. If it were me, I'd rack and let it settle again. Most likely you will get some sediment to mix back in when bottling/racking as the level drops and cleans the sides. After another racking, you may wish to filter too to get that fine polished clear look. I wouldn't filter now if there is that sediment still in the wine as it may clog your filters depending on what you filter with. Just my $0.02

Taste

After 3 months in the bottle, my dragon blood taste like a combination of mad dog 20/20 and raspberry cough syrup.

Suggestions?

When back sweeting, do you add the sugar straight into the carboy, and mix with a degassing tool? Sorry for the rookie question.
Tom

AkTom said:

When back sweeting, do you add the sugar straight into the carboy, and mix with a degassing tool? Sorry for the rookie question.
Tom

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That's what I do. I add the sugar to the carboy before I start racking then give it a good stirring.

Thanks. That's what I did. I wasn't sure the sugar would dissolve. It did
nicely. Thanks again.
Tom

Noobberry said:

Okay. Spakloid went in last Saturday. I have been noticing sediment similar to normal sediment at the bottom of the carboy. However, it runs up the curvy sides a little and some is further up stuck on the sides. Never used spakloid before. Will all that sediment stay put while I'm bottling (was hoping of do that tomorrow) or will it mix in my wine and make it cloudy?
Should I wait longer to bottle?

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Another trick is to spin your carboy left and right. That will help some of it drop.

In the future I would recommend using SuperKleer. It packs the less must better/tighter. I used Sparklloid in the beginning but got tired of dealing with what you are. Plus, I would bottle when it was crystal clear and then a few months in the bottle, these "whispies" would appear.

Pd2718 said:

After 3 months in the bottle, my dragon blood taste like a combination of mad dog 20/20 and raspberry cough syrup.

Suggestions?

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Did you follow the recipe as written?

What did you add for acid, ie: lemon juice, acid blend, etc. And how much?